Writing Women Into History – Who are the women on the timeline? Boudica b AD 33 Also known as or Boudicca, Boadicea or Boudicea, was a queen of a British Celtic tribe, the Iceni. She had been married to Prasutagus, ruler of the Iceni, but when he died the Romans decided to rule the tribe directly. As a result of their treatment of Boudica and her daughters, she led an uprising against them. Boudicca's warriors successfully defeated the Roman Ninth Legion and destroyed Colchester, London and Verulamium (St Albans). She died shortly after she was finally defeated and is said to have poisoned herself. Saint Bertha of Kent b approx. 565 Bertha was married to King Æthelbhert and her influence on her husband was said to have led to him giving St Augustine the freedom to preach and reside in Canterbury. She was canonized as a saint for helping to re-introduction of Christianity to England Hilda of Whitby or Hild of Whitby b approx. 614 St Hilda is a Christian saint who was a nun and the founding abbess of the monastery at Whitby. The abbey was a double monastery, home to both monks and nuns, which was not uncommon at the time. Hilda’s strength and wisdom were well known and the monastery was known for its observance of peace, charity, justice and piety. It was chosen as the venue for the Synod of Whitby, where a dispute over the date of Easter was decided. A legend tells that Hilda turned a plague of snakes to stone, explaining the ammonite fossils found in Whitby. Wulfrun(a) b approx. 935 Wulfruna was an Anglo-Saxon noble woman who held land and property in her own right on an equal basis to Saxon noblemen. In 985 King Aethelred granted lands at a place referred to as "a Heantun" to Wulfruna by royal charter. The lands contained livestock, farms, mills, other buildings. She endowed a collegiate church there in 994 and by 1070 this had become known as ‘Wolvrenehamptonia’ (Wolfrun's heaton) now the city of Wolverhampton. 1 Lady Godiva b 980 Lady Godiva, or Godgifu, was a late Anglo-Saxon noblewoman and the wife of Leofric, Earl of Mercia. She is mainly remembered for a legend dating back at least to the 13th century, which says that she rode naked through the streets of Coventry covered only in her long hair to help lessen the taxes imposed by Leofric on his tenants. The name "Peeping Tom" comes from versions of this legend, in which a man named Thomas watched her ride and was struck blind. Empress Matilda b 1102 Empress Matilda, also known as Empress Maud, was a daughter of Henry l. After his death she was one of the claimants to the English throne during the civil war, known as the Anarchy, between England and Normandy. After she gained a major victory at the Battle of Lincoln in 1141, she was declared 'Lady of England and Normandy' by the clergy, but she was not crowned as there was a revolt during the preparations for her coronation in London. Eventually she returned to Normandy and helped to establish her son as the heir to the English throne. He became Henry ll. Margaret of Beverley b 1150 Margaret of Beverley went on crusades to the Holy Lands in the 1180s where she became involved in the fighting. She was captured and released several times until she returned to England in 1191. Her brother records her as saying, ‘Though a woman, I seemed a warrior, I threw the weapon; though filled with fear, I learned to conceal my weakness’. Eleanor of Provence b 1223 Eleanor of Provence was the wife of Henry III. She was made regent of England in 1253 when her husband left for Gascony to launch a military expedition. His brother, Richard, was named as co-counsel, not as co- regent. Her continued collecting of taxes and fines to help fund her husband's war efforts caused resentment and made her unpopular. She remained influential during the last years of her husband’s reign. When he died her son, Edward, was away on crusade and she ensured that he was proclaimed King. Dame Julian of Norwich b 1342 Julian (or Juliana) of Norwich, also known as Dame Julian or Mother Julian, lived practically her whole life in the English city of Norwich. During an illness in 1373, she had a series of visions or "shewings" of the Passion of Christ. She recovered from her illness and wrote two versions of her experiences, the earlier one being completed soon after her recovery and a much longer version, today known as the Long Text, written many years later. This became a book called Revelations of Divine Love, the first written in English by a woman. 2 Margaret of Anjou b 1430 Queen Margaret was the queen consort of King Henry VI and a leader of the Lancastrians in the Wars of the Roses, where she played a major role. She was described as having ‘Valiant courage and undaunted spirit’ and as being a woman who ‘Excelled all other, as well in beauty and favour, as in wit and policy, and was of stomach and courage, more like to a man, than a woman.’ At times during Henry’s reign she ruled the kingdom in his place. She is a character in four of William Shakespeare's plays, all three Henry VI plays and Richard III. Susanna(h) Hornebolt b 1503 Susanna was an artist and known as the first female artist in England. She was the daughter of the Flemish artist Gerard Hornebolt and learned to paint with her father, who she worked for from 1520. She became known in Europe when Albrecht Dürer bought one of her illuminations. She is said to have painted miniatures for Henry VIII and his court. Catherine Parr b 1512 Katherine, Katheryn, Kateryn or Katharine was the last of the six wives of King Henry VIII. She was influential in the Third Succession Act in 1543 that restored both of his daughters, Mary and Elizabeth, to the line of succession to the throne. Catherine was appointed regent from July to September 1544 while Henry was on a military campaign in France. If he lost his life, she was to rule as regent until Edward came of age. Her book ‘Prayers or Meditations’ became the first book published by an English queen under her own name. She assumed the role of Elizabeth's guardian following the King's death, and published a second book, ‘The Lamentation of a Sinner’. Elizabeth Cavendish, Bess of Hardwick b approx. 1527 Bess Hardwick was born in Derbyshire but little is known of her early life. Bess married four times. Following the death of her first husband she joined the household of Lady Frances Grey, became a part of court life and began a friendship with Princess Elizabeth. Bess and her second husband built their wealth and social status. His death left her with exorbitant debt but she was fortunate to be made Lady of the Bedchamber when Elizabeth became queen. Her debts were paid off during her third marriage and she was left a wealthy widow. Bess and her fourth husband housed the captive Mary, Queen of Scots for Queen Elizabeth, which led to acrimony between Bess and her husband. But when he died, Bess was left second only in wealth to the Queen. She is remembered by her original family name. 3 Saint Margaret Ward b approx 1550 Margaret was born in Congleton, Cheshire, and was living in London in the service of a noble lady when she learned of the maltreatment of Richard Watson. He was a priest imprisoned in the Bridewell prison, near Fleet Street on the River Thames. He had been starved and shackled in a cell so small that he was unable to either stand up or lie down straight. She helped him to escape by smuggling a rope into the prison in her basket and persuading a boatman to ferry the priest across the river to safety. She was arrested for this, tried and sentenced to death. Saint Margaret Clitherow b 1556 Margaret was brought up as a protestant but converted to Catholicism. She refused to attend the Anglican church and was repeatedly fined for refusing. Eventually, she was designated as a recusant (one who fails to attend Anglican services) and was later imprisoned for nearly a year because of this. Margaret allowed secret masses to be celebrated in her home, where she also hid Catholic missionary priests. After further imprisonments and releases, she was seized and placed on trial. She refused to plead guilty or innocent, stating that only God could judge her, and was executed. Saint Anne Line b approx. 1563 Anne converted to Catholicism when she married. Her husband was arrested whilst attending mass and banished from England. When widowed, Anne was put in charge of a house opened as a refuge for Catholic priests. The priest who had opened it was imprisoned for about three years and Anne continued to run it during this time. She then hired apartments in another building and continued to shelter priests there. When her house was raided, she was arrested and imprisoned. At her trial she told the court that so far from regretting having concealed a priest, she only grieved that she ‘could not receive a thousand more’. She was condemned to death and executed . Margaret Lucas Cavendish b 1623 Margaret was an English aristocrat, philosopher, poet, scientist, fiction- writer, and playwright. She was self-taught, having had access to many books when she grew up.